QuarkXPress 7 Passport Review

Makaveli - January 30, 2008
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Features:

These features listed are only the new features of QuarkXPress 7 that aren't in any other version of XPress. The rest of the features can be found on Quark's website.

Basic functionality and navigation

Unify major functionality in a single location with tabbed Measurements palette
Apply colors with a single action from Measurements palette
Use keyboard shortcuts to tab through Measurements palette
Use improved space/align controls on the Measurements palette
Create tabs quickly and accurately with new Measurements palette controls and guides
Save screen real estate by using palette groups and sets
Organize your workspace with palette smart snapping
Switch image alpha channels on the fly from Measurements palette
Open and edit QuarkXPress Passport® files with single-language versions of QuarkXPress
Apply language settings at the character level

Layout, design, and graphics management

Apply individual opacity settings at the color level to text, box backgrounds, frames, lines, blend colors, etc.
Support alpha channels in imported images
Control layer opacity and blending mode of imported PSD files
Automatically flatten with resolution control
Export transparent PNG images from Web layouts
Apply soft drop shadows to page items
Skew, offset, and scale drop shadows
Synchronize drop shadow angles throughout the layout
Create text runaround from drop shadows
Use independent or inherited item opacity and shadow opacity
Knock out drop shadow with item
Multiply drop shadow to combine drop shadows with objects below the shadow
Synchronize boxes, pictures, text, and lines
Synchronize attributes (color, transformations, picture effects, styles, etc.)
Work in single-layout mode to simplify file naming
Append layouts within projects for easy content sharing
Export layouts into individual files or save them as an earlier version
Use split window view
Display multiple windows for the same layout
Use native transparency and drop shadows in Web layouts
Import Shockwave® Flash™ (SWF) files for interactivity in Web pages
Export vector objects and text as SWF from Web layouts
Benefit from superior smoothing with the new graphics engine
Export anti-aliased graphics from Web layout
Render shapes and rotate text more smoothly with the new graphics engine
Apply Blur and Diffuse to alpha mask
Integrate image formatting with shared content feature
Edit contrast curves numerically
Integrate alpha mask with existing layer opacity and blending mode features
Control content flow by linking text cells within a table or linking tables to each other

Printing and production

Use Composition Zones™ technology to share layouts among multiple projects and workstations with live updates
Use Composition Zones technology to design simultaneously in multiple media types or layout sizes
Use Composition Zones technology to divide a page for collaborative design
Synchronize design settings (among multiple users)
Synchronize color management settings (among multiple users)
Initiate jobs from tickets with built-in production settings
Customize preflighting and automatically evaluate layout at output, open, save
Access Job Jackets™ Manager for advanced users such as printers, who can provide Job Jackets to clients
Use JDF-compatible settings
Send real-time updates on all Job Jacket settings to layouts
Use always-on, always profile-based color management
Automatically monitor profile detection
Bundle key settings of source and output setups for color management
Use casual and advanced modes for color management
Easily soft proof files on-screen
Simulate various output devices on-screen, such as grayscale
Embed CMM preferences in layouts
Use LogoSync for black point compensation
Color manage whole workgroups with live updates via Quark Job Jackets files
Use presets for major color management standards
Color manage non-destructive image color correction
Color manage vector EPS and PDF files
Emulate color transformations of previous versions of QuarkXPress via ICC profiles
Access numerous additional advanced settings for color management
Create, share, and use PDF Output styles
Use preset standard PDF styles for typical workflows
Gain support for PDF/X 1-a and PDF/X 3
Export PDF with JDF
Evaluate PDF/X criteria during layout
Verify based on standard Callas libraries
Create smaller PDF file size through optimization and preset use

Text processing

Use OpenType font features including:
- Standard and discretionary ligatures
- Cross-platform support for ligatures
- Ligatures on-the-fly
- Ordinals
- Titling alternates
- All small caps
- Fractions
- Swashes
- Contextual alternates
- Proportional Figures
- Tabular Figures
- Oldstyle Figures
- Lining Figures
- Superscript and subscript
- Numerator and denominator
- Case-sensitive forms and capital spacing
- Historical forms
- Kern
- Ornaments
- Scientific inferiors
- Cross-stream ("vertical") kerning pairs
- OpenType styling support in Find/Change
- OpenType styling support in XPress Tags
- OpenType Kerning Preference
- Glyphs palette
- Insert Invisibles from Glyphs palette or Utilities menu
- New glyphs for invisible characters
- Font fallback to find correct font for unsupported characters
Find related alternate glyphs through the alternate glyph window in the Glyphs palette
Store and access favorite glyphs
Insert special characters from a menu
Access style sheets through any character attribute location, including Measurements palette
Revert paragraph attributes without removing local character formatting
Change Case
New default values for standard H&Js
Five new default H&Js including "No Hyphenation"
Paragraph rules can be set at "Column" length